


Romantic Relationships at work

by RainbowNixie



Category: Zoey's Extraordinary Playlist (TV)
Genre: Fluff, Humor, Hurt/Comfort, Light Angst, M/M, Max and Zoey are dating, Post-Episode: s02e01 Zoey’s Extraordinary Return
Language: English
Status: Completed
Published: 2021-01-09
Updated: 2021-01-09
Packaged: 2021-03-13 10:53:41
Rating: Not Rated
Warnings: Creator Chose Not To Use Archive Warnings
Chapters: 1
Words: 1,155
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/28652310
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/RainbowNixie/pseuds/RainbowNixie
Summary: Zoey and Leif talk about romantic relationships at work.
Relationships: Tobin Batra/Leif Donnelly, Zoey Clarke & Leif Donnelly, Zoey Clarke/Max Richman (mentioned)
Comments: 12
Kudos: 28





	Romantic Relationships at work

**Author's Note:**

> It’s been a really long time since I’ve written a fic, so I’m sorry if this is bad. Don’t expect too many feelings, this is just a short one-shot about these two getting along ‘cause I want them to be friends someday. Oh! And friendly reminder that English isn’t my first language!

It was late at night in the office, and Zoey was still getting used to being in charge of the fourth floor. Two weeks had passed since Joan left, and SPRQpoint felt empty without her aggressive-aggressive comments and her pretty noticeable and unforgettable presence. However, even if Zoey missed her boss, she had to admit that her future was beginning to look brighter. She deserved a bit of calm and happiness in her life, after all. 

Zoey was wearing her headphones, listening to a new podcast she had recently found. She could still hear Leif’s typing in front of her, though. It was kind of nice, actually. She had never imagined working so close to Leif, and it wasn’t as bad as everyone supposed it was. Of course they had spent nights together in the office, but they always managed to ignore each other until they went home. Working together, sitting in front of the other, and genuinely smiling now and then felt… great. Comfortable. And Zoey liked it.

A few minutes later, she heard Leif talking to her. Well, technically, she saw his lips moving and realized that the background noise was coming from him. Zoey took her headphones off and smiled apologetically at him. “Sorry, Leif. What did you say?”

“Oh, I…” He giggled, looking a little more nervous than usual. “I’ve been thinking about the company’s rules and regulations. Because I’m a new authority figure and all of that and…” He looked around for a moment, even if they knew they were the only ones on the fourth floor at the moment. “Are any… restrictions towards romantic relationships at work?” He whispered, even if it wasn’t necessary. 

“Oh.” Zoey didn’t expect that question. “I’m not sure, if I’m being honest. But as long as they don’t affect work I think they’re… okay? I’d have to check the document, though. Why do you ask me that?”

Leif suddenly stopped moving for a moment, but tried to answer quickly anyway. “As I’ve said, to be a better boss. Nothing personal.” He smiled, but Zoey knew something else was going on.

However, she didn’t say a word about it until Leif’s constant fidgeting as they worked became an annoying distraction. Zoey stopped typing to look at him, who was tipping really fast on the glass table. “You sure you’re okay, buddy?” 

Leif lifted his head from his laptop, and his hand stopped. “Yes!” He smiled again, and Zoey knew he was lying. “Why wouldn't I be?” 

“I… don’t know. But we could ask the table, if you prefer.”

“Is it that obvious?” He groaned.

“I mean… yes?” Zoey giggled, and looked softly at Leif. “Wanna talk about it? As your boss it’s my duty to make sure you’re okay.”

Leif sighed and took his glasses off. He didn’t seem annoyed by Zoey’s reassuring comment, but he sure was upset by something else. Zoey didn’t need any musical power to notice how he had been acting weird the whole day, and she was more than ready to help him. Leif looked directly at her, and she felt a wave of worry surrounding her body. Was she starting to genuinely care about the office’s most arrogant coder?

“Before actually dating Max… how did you two manage to be romantically involved without work getting in the way?” The last time Zoey had seen that look on Leif’s face was when Joan broke up with him, and everyone knew how that ended.

“Well… I wouldn’t say work didn’t get in the way. Remember the sixth floor vs fourth floor thing?” She giggled nervously, but Leif didn’t say a word. She cleared her throat and kept talking. “But… aside from that? Work didn’t affect our relationship. Or- well- pre-relationship I guess.” There was a moment of silence, where Leif seemed to fight the urge of talking and Zoey thought the right words to say. “Why are you-“

“Tobin told me he loves me.”

Okay, definitely, Zoey was astonished. Not because of Tobin’s confession, everyone in SPRQpoint knew he was hopelessly in love with Leif, and confessing was just a matter of time. Zoey was surprised because of Leif’s devastated expression. She had always thought that when something finally happened between them, it would be happy and joyful. Also annoying and pretty tiring. But, most importantly, not like this. 

“Oh- Wow- That’s-“ She was still trying to find the right way to react. “That’s... good…?” Leif looked away. “Is that good, Leif?”

“I do love him, Zoey. But…”

“But?”

“Even if I don’t have that much power, I’m still his boss. And I don’t want people to start talking. Or worse, to affect my work and get fired.”

She sighed. A work meeting had turned into an emotional and personal talk, and Zoey found concerning the way she was already used to it. “Look, Leif…” She wanted to give him good advice. Wanted to make him feel better because, even if he wasn’t the best co-worker she could ask for, Leif deserved to be happy. However, Zoey knew that if her reassuring talks hadn’t worked with him before, she had to find a way to make Leif believe her. She breathed in, and fixed her posture. “First things first, people already talk about you two. And sorry to break it to you, but even if you weren’t clearly in love with each other, everyone would still think you have favoritism towards him. He’s your best friend!” Leif was about to talk, but she interrupted him anyway. The advice wasn’t meant to come out that aggressively, but it seemed to be working. Zoey smiled, in a softer way. “And a friendly reminder that I’m your boss now, and I would never, ever, let work stop you from being happy.” 

Leif didn’t say anything. He just smiled thankfully at Zoey, and if that was how the true Leif was, perhaps being colleagues wouldn’t be a bad start after all. “I admit it, Clarke, you being the boss isn’t as bad as I thought it would be.” He smirked. “Although I still think I deserved the promotion.”

“Oh, yes. So you could have the chance to backstab us like you did with Max?” She half-joked. 

“Touché.”

They kept working and enjoying each other’s company in silence, until a question popped up inside of Zoey’s head. She didn’t want to bother Leif, because they had already progressed enough in their relationship, but curiosity was distracting her from getting the work done. “Hey umm… what did you tell Tobin?” Leif looked at her, confused. “When he confessed his feelings for you!”

He looked at everything but Zoey, uncomfortable all of a sudden, and trying to avoid speaking too loud. “I- I kind of ran out from his apartment and have been ignoring him for the past two days…?”

And oh, Zoey was sure those two would give her lots of new songs and, horrible, horrible headaches.


End file.
